Dec 22, 2018; Chicago, IL, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Keldon Johnson (3) reacts after making a steal late in the second half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports
December 23, 2018
Junior guard Rob Edwards scored a team-high 15 points Saturday to lead a balanced Arizona State attack as the No. 18 Sun Devils upset No. 1 Kansas 80-76 at Tempe, Ariz.
Sophomore guard Remy Martin drove for a go-ahead bucket and a 78-76 lead with 59 seconds left as part of a closing 13-2 run by Arizona State (9-2), which prompted a storming of the court in Wells Fargo Arena.
The Jayhawks called timeout with 22 seconds left but committed an over-and-back violation with 7 seconds remaining. Edwards then sealed the victory with two free throws.
The Sun Devils, who won 95-85 at Kansas last season, notched their first home win ever against a top-ranked visitor. They improved to 2-8 all-time against No. 1 teams, with their first win in such a matchup since 1981.
No. 19 Kentucky 80, No. 9 North Carolina 72
Freshman guard Keldon Johnson scored 23 points as the Wildcats defeated the Tar Heels in a battle of storied programs at the United Center in Chicago.
Reid Travis, who helped the Wildcats (9-2) get off to a good start, tallied 20 points. Tyler Herro’s 15 points and PJ Washington’s 11 also gave Kentucky a lift.
Cameron Johnson’s 17 points paced North Carolina (8-3). Luke Maye added 16 points and Kenny Williams had 11 points as seniors were the top three scorers for the Tar Heels.
No. 3 Tennessee 83, Wake Forest 64
Junior forward Grant Williams recorded 22 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots to lead the Volunteers to a victory over the visiting Demon Deacons in nonconference play at Knoxville, Tenn.
Senior forward Kyle Alexander scored a career-best 19 points on 9-of-10 shooting and also grabbed eight rebounds as the Volunteers (10-1) won their sixth straight game. Junior guard Jordan Bone contributed 18 points and five assists while senior guard Admiral Schofield tallied 12 points.
Sophomore guard Chaundee Brown scored 19 points for Wake Forest (6-4). Junior guard Brandon Childress added 14 for the Demon Deacons, who shot just 40.7 percent from the field and were 5 of 23 from 3-point range.
No. 4 Michigan 71, Air Force 50
The Wolverines cruised to their 12th straight victory to open the season by defeating the Falcons in a nonconference matchup at Ann Arbor, Mich.
Freshman Ignas Brazdeikis continued his great start to the season, scoring 19 points to lead Michigan. The win gave Michigan its 26th win in its last 27 games. The Wolverines also won for the 26th time in their last 27 home games at Crisler Center.
Michigan established a cushion around the midway point of the first half, going on a 13-3 run to take a 24-13 lead with 6:03 remaining in the first half. Junior forward Lavelle Scottie paced Air Force (4-7) with 16 points.
No. 5 Virginia 72, William & Mary 40
Sophomore De’Andre Hunter scored 12 of his team-high 18 points in the second half to power the Cavaliers past the Tribe in Charlottesville, Va.
Kyle Guy scored 16 points and pulled down seven rebounds to complement Hunter as the Cavaliers (11-0) used a series of spurts down the stretch to pull away from the Tribe (4-8).
William & Mary is the sixth opponent UVA has held under 50 points so far this season.
No. 6 Nevada 68, Akron 62
Jordan Caroline carried the Wolf Pack early, and Caleb Martin stepped up in crunch time in a close win over the visiting Zips in Reno, Nev.
Akron (7-5) whittled a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit down to three with 1:12 to go when Martin struck from the top of the key with a three to put the Wolf Pack up 63-57.
Despite shooting just 7-for-18 from the field and being frustrated throughout much of the game, Martin notched a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards. Caroline also scored 19 points and provided most of the offense for the Wolf Pack (12-0) while the rest of the team struggled early.
No. 7 Auburn 93, Murray State 88
Samir Doughty led the way with 20 points, and each of his fellow starters also scored in double figures as the Tigers held off the Racers at Auburn, Ala.
Austin Wiley and Chuma Okeke added 17 points each, Jared Harper scored 12 and Bryce Brown had 11 as the Tigers (10-2) bounced back from a 78-71 loss at NC State on Wednesday.
Ja Morant scored 25 points, Shaq Buchanan added 21, Tevin Brown had 19 and Darnell Cowart came off the bench to chip in 13 for the Racers (8-2), who were facing a top 10 team for the first time since the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
No. 11 Florida State 81, Saint Louis 59
The Seminoles won their sixth straight game in dominating fashion, defeating the Billikens in the Orange Bowl Basketball Classic in Sunrise, Fla.
Seminoles guard David Nichols led the way with 19 points as Florida State improved to 11-1 on the season, its lone loss coming a month ago to defending national champion Villanova.
The Billikens (8-4) were led by guard Javon Bess with 16 points, although it took his 18 shots to get there. Bess, the Billikens’ leading scorer on the season, finished 6 of 18 from the floor and added a team-high seven rebounds. Forward Carte’Are Gordon added 14 points and seven boards in the loss.
No. 15 Ohio State 80, UCLA 66
C.J. Jackson scored 20 of his 22 points in the second half, and Kaleb Wesson had 15 points and a career-high 12 rebounds for the Buckeyes in a victory against the Bruins at the United Center in Chicago.
Ohio State (11-1) has won five straight. UCLA (7-5) lost its third in a row.
Kyle Young had 11 points for the Buckeyes, who were ahead 33-30 at the half. Kris Wilkes led the Bruins with 18 points. Jaylen Hands added 13 points and Cody Riley 10.
No. 16 Wisconsin 84, Grambling 53
After becoming the 15th player in Big Ten history with 1,000 career rebounds, Badgers senior forward Ethan Happ finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists in a win over the Tigers at Madison, Wis.
Happ shot 6-for-12 from the floor to score in double figures for the 36th consecutive game. The Badgers (10-2) have won all six games at home and don’t play again until Dec. 29 at Western Kentucky.
Wisconsin sophomore guard D’Mitrik Trice added 14 points, and freshman guard Kobe King finished with 10. Dallas Polk-Hilliard paced Grambling (6-7) with 17 points.
No. 17 Mississippi State 67, Wright State 63
Quinndary Weatherspoon scored 14 points, and the Bulldogs held off the pesky Raiders at Jackson, Miss.
Aric Holman added 12 points, Lamar Peters scored 11 and Tyson Carter had 10 for the Bulldogs (11-1).
Bill Wampler scored 19 and Parker Ernsthausen and Mark Hughes scored 11 each to lead the Raiders (6-7), who overcame a double-digit, second-half deficit to tie the score at 55 with less than six minutes to play.
No. 22 Indiana 94, Jacksonville 64
Senior forward Juwan Morgan had 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for the first triple-double for the Hoosiers in 47 years as they completed an undefeated December with a nonconference victory over the Dolphins at Bloomington, Ind.
The Hoosiers (11-2) earned their sixth consecutive victory, all since a loss at Duke on Nov. 27, and had their first undefeated month since November 2012. The Indiana run includes victories in its first two Big Ten Conference games.
Senior forward Jace Hogan scored 17 points for the Dolphins (7-7), who lost at Notre Dame on Thursday and are 7-3 after starting the season 0-4.
No. 23 Iowa 110, Savannah State 64
Five Hawkeyes players finished in double figures, and the defense dominated the struggling Tigers in an easy victory in Iowa City, Iowa.
Savannah State came into the game against Iowa at ranked 353rd — last — among Division I teams in scoring defense, surrendering an average of 100.1 points per game. Joe Wieskamp led the way with 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting for the Hawkeyes (10-2), who made 19 3-pointers.
Zach Sellers finished with 18 points, and Jaquan Dotson tallied 13 for the Tigers (3-11).
No. 25 Nebraska 86, Cal State Fullerton 62
James Palmer Jr. scored 23 points, and the Cornhuskers held the Titans to just 37.9 percent from the field in a win at Lincoln, Neb.
Isaiah Roby added a career-high 20 points, along with eight rebounds and three assists for the Cornhuskers (10-2). Isaac Copeland Jr. scored 12 points, while Glynn Watson Jr. recorded a career-high 10 assists to go with 10 points for Nebraska.
Kyle Allmann Jr. (18.3) and Khalil Ahmad (17.6) entered play ranked second and third in the Big West in scoring. Allmann didn’t score in the first 14-plus minutes and scored just two first-half points but finished with 16 points to lead the Titans (3-9).
–Field Level Media
